I Dreamed A Dream
Part Seven - What Really Counts
By Breigh
breighbers@juno.com

Ok, this series needs explanation, and here's one:
This series starts around 6 years after "The Storm". When Doug left Carol was pregnant, and she decided to not tell him about the baby. Instead of having twin girls, she had twin boys, Ben and Joel. (You might not like the idea now, but trust me, it grows on you as the series goes along. Also, this story is one of my first, and the next ones are a lot better developed, and they're better than this one, this is just the one that explains everything and gets you into the series.) One day Doug comes back to Chicago for a conference and finds Carol and he meets the two little boys that he never knew he had, and that's where it all starts! Feedback is always appreciated, send mail to: Breighbers@juno.com

Doug realizes what really matters in his life.



It's 3 weeks later. Doug had his interview at Mercy, and they hired him. He's still staying at Carol's, and they've silently decided that he's not going to go anywhere else. Carol isn't pregnant yet, and they are upset, but they know that it could take a while, so they didn't have their hopes up. Right now their concentrating on what they do have. Doug is doing a whole lot better, and he'll be starting work in a week. He wishes that he could work at County, but he knows that that is only a wish. Ben made the travel team for hockey. Tonight is his first game. Doug has yet to see him play, so Ben's really excited that he's going to be there. Today Ben and Joel are staying home with Doug. They're all going out to Seattle to get Doug's stuff in 3 weeks.

"Ok, I'm off to work." Carol said standing over Doug. She pulled her hair out of her shirt and waited until she saw his eyes flutter open.

"Uh-huh." Doug said.

"I don't know what you're going to do when you go back to work." Carol said with a light laugh. Doug just nodded. "Ok, well Ben and Joel are still sleeping. I have work until 4, and then I'm coming home. I'm not going to make dinner before Ben's game, we can just grab something." Again Doug nodded. "Doug Ross, do you have any clue of what I'm saying?" Carol asked bending down to him. He grabbed her and pulled her down onto the bed with him. He rolled her on top of him and began kissing her neck.

"Yes Carol Hathaway, I have a clue of what you're saying." He said as the two giggled as Joel walked in. He looked at the two and Carol raised her head to see him standing at the doorway. They had been careful not to do anything in front of the boys. Carol sat up quickly, her hair was messed up and Doug sprung up next to her. He quickly jumped out of bed and ran over to Joel. He scooped him up in his arms and blew on his neck. The little boy broke into laughter as Doug carried him over to the bed. Doug threw him down on the bed and then jumped on the bed.

"Dad!" He screamed playfully. He giggled as Doug tickled him. Carol went to get up and Doug pulled her down onto her back.

"And just where do you think your going?" Doug asked as Carol laughed.

"I have work."

"Oh, well I think we can change that." Doug said looking over at Joel who broke into laughter at the near sight of Doug. Joel stood up on the bed and began to tickle Carol. She started laughing as Ben ran into the room. Doug heard him and turned around. "Hey buddy." Doug said as Ben ran over to the bed.

"Come on Ben, we're stopping mom from going to work!" Joel said between laughs.

"Oh come on, I'm triple teamed!" Carol said stating her case as Ben jumped on the bed and started tickling Carol.

"Ok, I'm on mom's team." Doug said as he pulled Joel off of Carol and threw him to another spot on the bed. Then he got Ben and picked him up and threw him over next to Joel.

"Dad! That's no fair!" Joel said as he started crawling back to get to Carol, but Doug got him first and threw him playfully back to the spot on the bed. Then Ben and Joel both lunged at him and knocked him on his back. Ben held Doug's arms over his head and Joel tickled under his arms.

"No! No! Help!" Doug said looking over at Carol. She was laughing at the scene as she redid her hair. This time she pulled it up.

"Ok guys, I really have to go." Carol said as Ben and Joel stopped and moved off of Doug. They sat Indian style and watched Carol. "Dad will bring you in for lunch, and I'll see you then." Carol said as she kissed each of the boys on the head and then rubbed her hand through their hair. Then Doug got up and walked towards Carol. "I'll see you later." Carol said as Doug wrapped his arms around her.

"Dad, are you gonna kiss her?" Ben asked just as Doug was about to kiss Carol. They both turned their heads and looked at the boys.

"I was thinking about it." Doug said rubbing his hands up and down her back.

"Well, I think you should." Joel chimed in.

"Ok, then." Doug said as he gently kissed Carol on the lips. "I love you." He said as they parted.

"I love you too, and I love you guys." She said to Joel and Ben. She glanced down at her watch. "Oh god, I'm running so late!" Carol said as she frantically ran out of the room. "Have fun guys-and don't break anything!" She screamed as she ran out of the house. Doug looked over at the two little boys sitting on the bed.

"So, what do you guys want to do today?"

"I'm hungry." Joel said jumping off of the bed.

"Ok, well what do you want?" Doug asked looking down at him.

"Eggs and bacon." Joel said with a tilt of his head.

"Eggs and bacon, huh?"

"Yes, mom can make that…can you?" Joel asked. Doug bent down and picked him up.

"For your information, I taught your mom everything she knows about making eggs and bacon."

"Really Dad?" Ben asked as he bounced off the side of the bed.

"Swear to god." Doug said as he moved Joel up higher on his hip.

"Ok, then let's see it!" Ben said as he ran out of the room. Doug followed with Joel.

"What are you trying to say Kerry?" Robert Ramono asked. He and Kerry were the only two left behind from an administrative conference.

"I'm saying that ever since Doug Ross left 6 years ago, pediatric patient care has gone down hill. He ran things great, and all the patients love him."

"Yes Kerry, but do you remember all the crap he got us into?" Ramono said as he leaned back in his chair.

"That was 6 years ago, and I called the hospital where he worked in Seattle, and they had no problem with him."

"So what your saying is that you want me to offer Ross a job as peds attending?"

"Yes." Kerry said awaiting his reaction. She had been thinking about hiring Doug ever since she heard he'd come back. She couldn't help but feel somewhat guilty of the fact that Carol had been raising Ben and Joel alone. She also knew that the ER needed him. Ever since he left things hadn't quiet been the same. The patient care, everything, and there was this weird silence that hung in the air. Work was definitely better when Doug was there, even if no one realized it until he was gone. Ramono took a deep breath, then leaned forward.

"I'll give him one chance." He said putting up one of his fingers. "If he can work his magic crap and fix the ER, then I guess it will be worth it. But if he screws up, he's gone, and you're responsible. I can't be playing mother to him." Ramono said leaning back once again.

"So then we can hire him as peds attending?"

"If he wants the job, then give it to him." Ramono said getting up. Kerry leaned back in her chair and smiled to herself, for the first time in a while this felt right, and she knew she would only have to give Doug one chance.

Doug was scrambling the eggs when the phone rang. The boys were in the living room playing rug hockey (it's with miniature hockey nets and tiny sticks, you usually play on your knee's).

"Ben, Joel, can one of you please get that?" Doug yelled.

"I will!" Ben screamed as he ran over to the phone. The ringing stopped and Doug heard Ben's voice talking to the person on the other end. "Hello?"

"Hi, is this Ben, or Joel?" Kerry asked.

"This is Ben."

"Hi Ben, this is Kerry, from your mom's work, you know me."

"Yeah, hi."

"Hi, um is your dad home?"

"Yes, he's cooking eggs." Ben said looking into the kitchen.

"Wow, that's nice of him."

"Uh-huh." Ben said walking into the kitchen.

"Can I please talk to him, it's important."

"Ok." Ben said taking the phone away from his ear. "Dad, it's for you, it's Kerry." Doug just looked at his son, Kerry? What the hell could she want? He thought as he took the phone from Ben.

"Hello?" Doug asked as he put the lid on the pan.

"Hi Doug, I know we haven't really talked since you've gotten back, but I've got an offer for you." Kerry said excitedly.

"Ok." Doug said as he moved the eggs off of the burner that was on and onto another one.

"I was wondering if maybe you'd be interested in becoming County's new pediatric attending. I talked it over with Ramono, and things have changed drastically since you've been gone. The patient care has decreased, along with patient satisfaction." Doug couldn't believe his ears. This is what he had been praying to hear, but knew that he probably wouldn't. But he was! He didn't want to sound to eager, so he downplayed his reaction.

"Wow, I was not expecting that."

"I know you got a job at Mercy, but I thought you'd want to work here, and we need you." They needed him, he couldn't believe that Kerry Weaver had just admitted to them needing him.

"Kerry, I'm going to have to think about this. Can I call you back in a little bit?"

"Sure, of course." Kerry said gently.

"Ok, well I'll call you in a little while."

"Alright then, I'll talk to you later."

"Ok, bye." Doug said as the two hung up their phones.

"Who was that?" Carol asked Kerry as she walked into the lounge. Kerry looked up at her; she didn't want to tell her about Doug, she knew that Doug would probably want to tell her.

"A doctor I'm trying to hire."

"Another doctor? For what?" Carol questioned.

"Actually, he's a pediatric attending." Kerry said with a nod, then she got up, leaving a hurt Carol behind. How could Kerry do that in front of her? And how could she have the nerve to tell her that? She knew about Doug, and that was Doug's job. Ever since he left there had never been another pediatric attending. Of course now he was back, but still it would be hard knowing that Doug could probably do the job 10 times better than any other guy.

"What did she want Dad?" Joel asked Doug as he put the eggs and bacon onto three plates.

"Nothing." Doug said casually.

"Then why did you say you'd have to think about it?" Ben asked putting down his rug hockey stick, as did Joel, and then the two boys walked over to the table.

"She asked me a question, and I'm going to have to think about the answer." Doug said setting the plates in front of the boys.

"What question did she ask?" Ben asked as Doug poured each of the boys a glass of milk, and then got a cup of coffee for himself. Then he walked over and sat at the table with the boys.

"Did you ever hear the phrase, 'curiosity kills the cat?'" Doug asked.

"But we don't have a cat." Ben said.

"But we did have a hamster, his name was Gus, but we didn't feed him enough and he died." Joel added.

"Yeah, and mom told us that she'd get us a dog, but that was before the hamster, and when he died she didn't want a dog to die too." Ben said. Doug just smiled and took a bite of his eggs.

"Well, what do you boys want to do today?" Doug asked as Ben ate a piece of his bacon.

"Can we go to the park?" Joel asked.

"If that's what you two want to do."

"Hey Dad, when do you have to go back to work?" Joel asked.

"Next week."

"So then do we have to go back to having a babysitter?" Ben asked Doug.

"Well, we'll have to see. Probably not all the time, mom and I will try to have different shifts so one of us can be home with you."

"What if you can't?" Joel asked as he gathered his eggs onto his fork.

"Then you guys will have to have a baby sitter. But you're going to be starting school soon, right?"

"Yep, first grade!" Joel said proudly. Doug smiled at his son.

"Well, then if we work during the day, you guys won't have to have a babysitter."

"But you may have to change sometimes, right?" Ben asked.

"Huh?" Doug asked not understanding his question.

"Mom has to switch her shifts a lot." Joel confirmed.

"Well, when you need a babysitter we'll have to get one." Doug said with a smile. Both of the boys nodded. "So then, today is going to be a man's day at the park, we can play and get dirty, what do you say?"

"Dad, I saw this stick at the sports store." Ben started.

"Well, we can pick it up on our way." Doug said with a smile.

"Really?" Ben asked excitedly.

"Sure, but only this once, I don't want to spoil you." Doug looked over at Joel. "And you sir, what is it that you want?"

"Well, there's this glove."

"Is it at the same store?" Doug asked.

"Yes." Joel said with a smile.

"Ok, then for you we'll get a stick, and for you we'll get a glove."

"And then we can have a men's day?" Joel asked excitedly.

"Yep, and then we can have a men's day." Doug said taking a sip of his coffee and then getting up and heading over to the sink.

Mark walked into the storeroom where Carol was putting away supplies.

"How you doin?" He asked. He hadn't really talked to her in a while.

"Good." Carol said scribbling something down on her paper.

"Everything ok with Doug and the boys?" He asked leaning back against the wall. Carol turned around to face him.

"Why?"

"I don't know, it's just been a while since he was back, and I haven't heard anything."

"Maybe that's because there's nothing to hear." Carol said with a half smile.

"I sure hope so." Mark paused and saw something was bothering Carol. "You ok?" He asked. Carol hesitated for a couple minutes and then looked over at him.

"You're hiring a new pediatric attending?" Carol questioned.

"What?"

"I heard Kerry on the phone talking to a guy about a pediatric attending position." Carol paused and swallowed. "We haven't had one of them in 6 years, since Doug left." She said with a nod. She just looked over at Mark. He knew that Kerry had offered the pediatric attending position to Doug, and he also knew that Doug would want to be the one to break the news to Carol.

"Yeah, well we need one, this guys just a temporary to see if he's any good."

"I don't expect you to offer the job to Doug. I mean after clashing with you and Kerry, and after being gone for so long. I didn't expect him to come walking back and get a job here. Hell, I didn't expect him to come back. But I don't know, now that he is it's just going to be weird not working with him, when I know that I could be."

"Well, it is going to be awkward, but does that really count? I mean the only thing that really counts is that he's there at the end of the day. When everything is said and done, he's next to you. I think that that is what really counts Carol. He loves you and the boys, and that's it, so I don't think him not having this job is really that big of a deal." Mark said with a smile and a tilt of his head.

"Your right, and I know it. His job doesn't count, and I know it won't effect anything. It was just wishful thinking I guess." She said with a smile.

"Looks like we may have to post pone the trip to the park." Doug said as he came down the steps. The boys were sitting in the living room playing video games.

"Is it gonna thunder dad?" Joel asked turning to Doug.

"I don't know bud, can I turn on the weather really quick and check?" Doug asked rubbing a comb through Joel's hair. Ben nodded and climbed down to turn off the video game. Doug walked over and got the clicker and found the weather channel.

"What's it say? What's it say?" Ben asked referring to the words
scrolling at the bottom of the screen.

"It says that there's a sever thunderstorm warning for Cook County." Doug
said looking over at them.

"Dad, don't we live in Cook County?" Joel asked.

"Yes, we live in Cook County." Doug said getting up and flicking off the TV. "Guys, lets bring mom her lunch now, so we can be back here when the storm hits. I will get you guys your stuff later if it's not that bad, or tomorrow, is that ok?" Both of the boys nodded and looked over at Doug. "You don't like thunderstorms…do you?" He asked as he placed Carol's lunch in a bag.

"No." Ben said assertively, and Joel simply nodded.

"Alright, well lets hurry and get over there then." He said walking over and grabbing his keys off of the table by the door. Both boys quickly jumped off the couch and ran out the door to the car. As they did so they sky was darkening and the wind was getting intense. "It'll be ok." Doug said unlocking the doors to the car. Both of the boys quickly jumped in. When Dog hesitated on getting in Ben screamed to him.

"Dad! Dad get in the car!" He yelled jumping out of his seat. Doug smiled as he got in the car and set the bag containing Carol's lunch down on the other seat.

"Worried about me?" Doug asked turning around to the boys. They both just slid back in their seats. "Seatbelts you two." He said as he started pulling out of the garage.

In the 10-minute ride to County, the rain had already begun. It came down gently at first, but as the boys and Doug started to get out of the car it came down heavily, as if it's purpose was to drench them. Joel took Carol's lunch, and Doug took each of the boys' hands and they all ran into the ER. They were drenched as they walked through the ambulance doors.

"Mom!" Ben yelled as he ran towards Carol. She was standing at the nurses' desk.

"Uh, your soaked!" Carol said as he jumped into her arms. She kissed his head, and then set him on the ground. "Hey Joel." Carol said as Joel strolled over to her nonchalantly.

"Hi mom." Joel said as Doug shook his head back and forth to shake of the water, then he took of his coat.

"Hey honey." Doug said kissing Carol's cheek.

"Hey." Carol said with a smile. "I didn't think you'd be able to get them out of the house with the storm coming." Carol said looking over at Doug.

"Hey, I'm their dad, I can do anything!" He said laughing. Carter walked over to them and looked down at Ben and Joel.

"Hey guys!"

"Hey Carter!" Ben said with a smile.

"Hi Carter." Joel said as he waved slightly.

"Hey I'm going down to the cafeteria, you wanna come with me?" He asked the boys. Both boys instinctively looked up at Carol, but it was Doug who answered. He was really getting into the "dad" thing, the setting rules, and the goodnight kisses, all of it. He reached into his pocket and pulled out two 5-dollar bills.

"Dr. Ross, they don't…" Carter began. Doug shook his head and handed each of the boys one 5.

"Behave, hear me?" Doug asked looking down at them.

"Got it!" They both yelled as they started off towards the elevator with Carter.

"Hey, I need to talk to you about something." Doug said looking over at Carol.

"Um, alright, it's pretty slow, we can go in the lounge." Carol said heading off to the lounge, Doug followed her closely. As Carol sat down at the table there was a huge bolt of lightning and a loud bang of thunder. Carol looked over at Doug. "I bet the boys are panicking." She said shaking her head. Within minutes there was another huge bang, and then the sky lit up. Next the light flickered off. For about 5 minutes they sat there in the dark. "Oh god, Ben and Joel. They hate it when the lights go out!" Carol panicked.

"Alright, alright, well lets just give it a minute and hope it comes back on, we can't go looking for them with no power." Doug said trying to calm her down, but the truth was he was worried about the boys.

"Doug! You don't understand, we have to get to them, they hate things like this!" Carol said as she sprung up.

"Ok, ok." Doug said getting up and heading out into the ER followed by Carol. They both went over to the elevator, and in front of it they both froze. It had only been minutes after the boys and Carter got on the elevator that the power went off, they could be stuck in there. Doug looked over at Carol and knew she was thinking the same thing. He remembered all those years ago when he and Carol were stuck in the elevator.

"Doug?" Carol asked hesitantly.

"Alright, I want you to bang on the door and wait to see if you hear anyone. I'm going to go run down to the cafeteria and see if they're there."

"Oh my god, what if they're not? What if they're stuck in the elevator?" Carol said as tears came to her eyes. Doug walked over and took her arms in his hands.

"They'll be ok, they're with Carter." Doug said moving a loose strand of hair away from Carol's face. She nodded and banged on the door. Before Doug could get down the stairs he heard Carter's voice. He stopped dead in his tracks. They were stuck in the elevator. Doug turned back and saw Carol standing in front of the elevator with one arm across her stomach and the other over her mouth. "Carter! Carter it's Doug, where are you?" Doug yelled.

"We're stuck between floors I think."

"Ok, ok…" Doug said looking over at Carol. "Ben, Joel, are you guys ok?"

"Dad!" Doug heard Joel yell.

"Dad get us out!" Ben yelled up to Doug.

"Ok, ok guys I'm going to get you out, just hang tight." He said as he turned to Carol. "Ok, go get Jerry, Malik, Mark, Benton, any strong guy you can find. And um, try to find something strong enough to pry the doors open with." Doug said trying to keep his cool. Carol nodded and quickly ran to find anyone that may be able to help Doug. She came across Benton and Malik who were at the nurses' desk.

"Guys!" She yelled as she ran up to them. They both turned to her. "Carter and the twins are stuck between floors, can you help Doug?" She asked frantically.

"Yeah, sure Carol." Benton said as he and Malik ran off. Carol came across Elizabeth who was walking down the hall.

"Carol, what's wrong?" She asked noticing Carol's expression.

"Ben, Joel and Carter are stuck in the elevator between floors!" She exclaimed.

"Oh god, are they ok?"

"Yeah, I think so, they're probably just scared, but um, I need to find like a crowbar or something to pry the door open with." She said looking around the ER.

"Ok, well how about an IV stand?" Elizabeth offered.

"Do you think it's too flimsy?"

"It's worth a try."

"Alright, well um…"

"Go, I'll get the IV." Elizabeth said as Carol nodded her thank yous and ran back over to the elevator. Doug was talking to Ben, who she could tell was crying.

"Ben, buddy you've got to calm down ok? We're going to get you guys out, just calm down." He looked over at Carol; he was down on his hands and knees.

"Elizabeth is getting an IV stand." She said crossing her arms over her chest. Doug nodded.

"Doug, I don't think I'm going to be able to get this door open!" Carter yelled up to him.

"Dad!" Joel yelled up, he too was crying. Doug sat back on his but on the floor and rubbed his hands through his hair.

"Alright, well if we can get this door open, then I should be able to see the top of the elevator door, and I can help you pry it open."

"Ok." Carter yelled back. Doug turned around to Benton and Malik just as Jerry and Elizabeth ran to them with some IV stands.

"Here you go Dr. Ross." Jerry said as Doug stood up.

"Ok, I'm going to start to pry open the doors, um, somebody can help with the IV stand, and the other two can take a door and pull it aside." Doug said looking at the three guys.

"Alright, well Jerry and I can hold the doors, Malik, you pry it open with the stand." Benton directed them. Carol stepped back along with Elizabeth, she heard the boys crying from inside.

"God Doug, hurry up!" She yelled as she placed her hand over her mouth. Elizabeth put her arm around her, and Doug said nothing.

"Ok Carter, we're going to do the first door." Doug stopped, he realized that Jerry and Benton may not be strong enough to hold the door open while they tried to open the other one.

"What? Doug what is it?" Carol asked frantically.

"I need a bed."

"A what?" Elizabeth asked not knowing the nature of this.

"A bed, a gurney or something. It'll hold the doors open. Once we get them open we can slide it in between. I can sit on the end of the bed and lean down to try to open the elevator doors."

"I'll get one." Elizabeth said running off.

"Daddy, please, please I wanna get out!" Joel yelled through his tears.

"I know, and we're going to get you out in a few minutes. Just hang tight, alright?" Doug yelled as Elizabeth ran back with the bed.

"Here you go Doug." She said sliding the bed up near them.

"Alright, when we get the doors open wide enough, can you slip it in?" He asked.

"Yes." She said nodding.

"Here we go." Doug said as he opened the doors just slightly. Malik quickly shoved the IV stand between in. "Ok, ok pull it to the left, I'll push the doors apart, and you guys get ready to jump in there." He said. By this time a rather large crowd had began to gather around the back of them. Malik pulled open the doors with the stand and Doug pulled it wider with his arms, as soon as there was enough room for Benton and Jerry to move the doors aside they stepped in. "Alright, Malik, move!" Doug yelled and Malik moved out of the way. "Elizabeth, move in the bed." He said stepping aside as Elizabeth pushed the bed between the doors. Benton and Jerry each moved aside, and the doors banged against the bed. Doug held his breath, hoping that the bed wouldn't crush and the doors would hold it open. After waiting about 3 minutes he saw that it would be stable. He climbed up on the bed and crawled over to inspect if he would be able to pry the doors open.

"Doug? Doug, can you get it open?" Carol asked as she started to go near him. Doug turned to her.

"Yeah, yeah I think I can." He said before turning back to the elevator. "Carter, I got the first door open. I'm going to help you get this door open. I'm going to start, and then you can help me. Then I want you to put your back up against one side of the door and put your foot against the other to keep them open like a wedge. I'll lift Ben and Joel out, and then I'll hold it open and you can get out, understand?"

"Yeah, I got it!" Carter yelled and Doug began opening the doors. He got them open and saw as Carter's hands came through and started opening the doors. Soon Carter was visible and he positioned himself as Doug told him. Then Doug saw as both of the boys appeared. Their eyes were both red, and their cheeks were tearstained.

"Dad!" Ben wailed when he saw him. Doug sighed a sigh of relief that they were both ok, never had he been so scared in his life. He had managed to keep his cool, but inside he was all torn up.

"Hey buddy." Doug said laughing. Ben ran over first. "Ok Ben, now carefully, without hitting Carter I'm going to lift you out." Doug said as everyone who had gathered had silenced. Doug leaned down into the elevator and put his hands down to Ben. Ben wrapped his arms around him tightly and Doug quickly kissed the side of his head. "Ok, tuck your legs in." Doug said as Benton moved over and pulled Doug back. Doug fell back onto the bed with Ben on top of him. Doug hugged him quickly, and then Carol ran over.

"Oh god honey." She said as she lifted him off the bed. She held him tightly and he wrapped his arms around her. Carol stepped back as Doug leaned down into the elevator again. Joel was sniffling and huffing.

"Alright dude, you ready?" Doug asked as He embraced Joel. Joel held onto Doug tightly as he lifted him out of the elevator. He also kissed Joel and hugged him before setting him down. Carol set down Ben and then ran over and got Joel as Doug held the doors open for Carter. Carter quickly grabbed the end of the bed and pulled himself out. Once he was out Doug quickly removed his hands, and the doors slammed shut. Doug decided to leave the bed in the elevator, it was too dangerous to try to remove it, and there was a good chance it wouldn't work. Doug jumped off the bed and ran over to both of the boys. He checked them out. "Are you two ok? Is anything wrong?" He asked as he ran his hands all over them. Both boys shook their heads no. Doug couldn't hold his emotions anymore and he pulled both of the boys to him and a gentle tear came down his face. He pulled away and rubbed his hands through the boys' hair just as the power flickered back on. The elevator doors tried to shut and opened a little, then came back and banged against the door. Mark pulled the bed out and the doors shut.

"I-I never w-wanna go on an-n elevator again." Joel said before crying again. Everyone around them laughed as did Doug and he pulled his son to him.

"I know buddy." Doug said as Carol walked up behind Ben. She rubbed her hands through his hair and then bent down to Doug and Joel. She put her rubbed her hand up and down Joel's back and leaned over to Doug.

"You were amazing." Carol said with a smile and then she leaned over and kissed Doug. Ben smiled as Carol moved away. "Uh, I love my boys." She said wrapping her arms around Ben and picking him up. Doug stood up, still holding Joel, and Joel wrapped his legs around Doug's waist. Kerry walked over to Doug with a smile.

"That was great Doug." She said with a smile.

"Thank you." He said squeezing Joel.

"I know this may be a bad time, but have you thought about it?" Kerry asked. Carol just looked at Doug; she had no clue what she was talking about. Doug looked over at Carol and Ben, and then he looked over at the group of doctors and nurses. It would be nice to work here again, to be with all these people. Doug smiled and lifted Joel up higher on his hip.

"Yeah, and I'd love to take it." He said with a smile.

"Well, that's great. You could come by tomorrow maybe and we could meet with Anspaugh and Romono to negotiate a salary." She said with a nod.

"That's great." Doug said as he and Carol walked away.

"What was that all about?" Carol asked as they walked into the lounge.

"You are looking at the new pediatric attending." Doug said proudly. Joel had fallen asleep from the whole ordeal and he set him down on the couch. Carol set down Ben and he walked over and plopped down on a chair. Carol ran over to Doug.

"Oh you're kidding me!" She said jumping into his arms.

"Nope." He said laughing as he spun her around.

"Oh gosh Doug, that's great! We're going to be working together again!" She said as Doug set her down and kissed her passionately. Carol smiled up at him.

"One year ago I was sulking about how much my life sucked, about how nothing mattered to me, and how I was just going through life waiting for the day when it would be over." Doug said looking at Carol. "But now. Now it's like…wow! This is my life, I'm really living it, I'm really a dad, and you're really here." He paused a second and looked over at the boys. Ben had fallen asleep in the chair. "This is what really counts Carol, us, a family. This is what people want their lives to be, and you have no clue how happy I am that this is my life."

"I'm really happy that this is my life too." Carol said smiling before the two kissed gently.